playing galaga is the way to meet your soulmate
by AfterReign
Summary: Being dragged outside and getting lost was definitely not Kenma's idea of fun, but did that really matter when he encountered such a cute guy in a place that resembled heaven? No. No, it did not. "... but if he touched the joystick and I touched the joystick... does that mean we're indirectly holding hands?"


**... Why did I write so much? I thought this was going to be some short fic, but...**

**Anyway, it's my first time writing in the Haikyuu! fandom, and I get to write Kenhina! Honestly, I think they're my favorite ship besides Kagehina...**

**This is based on a true story, oddly enough. ... A really embarrassing story.**

**Also, thanks pyayaya for letting me use your artwork for my cover! Everyone, please check out the link to their art on my profile! **

**I hope they're not too OOC, and if there are any grammar mistakes, please tell me!**

**Please enjoy!**

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"... Where the hell did Kuroo go?"

Golden eyes searched the area, frantic, but they were only met with unfamiliar faces and an even more unfamiliar area. That black-haired teenager never answered any of Kenma's three calls, and the younger of the two's message on LINE hadn't gotten a reply either. With a defeated sigh, Kenma tucked away his iPhone after playing two rounds of Candy Crush. Standing around wouldn't get him anywhere.

"Whatever," the reserved boy huffed, hands now in the pockets of his jersey. "I guess I'll just hang out at some place until he texts me back."

_But…_ He quickly shuffled his feet in the crowd of strangers, eyeing shops and restaurants. _… where do I even go?_

By choice, Kenma would never take a step outside, but because of his one and only friend, the quiet boy was suddenly forced into a loud world filled with excitement and laughter. And no, it wasn't like he hated going outside; he just preferred playing video games in the comforts of his room.

The outside was different. It was hard to feel comfortable anywhere because nothing was really constant. That tree you liked to take naps under will get chopped down, that playground you hang out at with your friends might not be there the next day, and that sweets shop you always saved money for could go out of business. Unlike the real world, the small space in his room would stay the same as long as he was in it.

Yellow topaz orbs briefly lingered on a run-down but still open café, named 'Tawagoto Café', and the possibility of them serving apple pie made the awkward teen tarry around the place for several moments, taking glances inside the place. After a moment or two, he decided against it. _There's no way I'll be able to order anything without Kuroo with me…_

Ignoring his appetite, he scurried back into the crowd without much of a choice, until Kenma thought he saw heaven. His eyes slowly widened in pleasant surprise, as if he found the answer to life, and in a certain way, Kenma had.

_An arcade!_

With newly found vigor, Kenma scrambled out of the crowds, a few questioning looks directed to him, and found himself surrounded by a great number of arcade machines.

_'Pac-Man', 'Street Fighter', 'Sonic', 'Plants vs. Zombies', 'Stargate', 'Mortal Kombat', 'Mario', 'Frogger', 'Project Diva Arcade' …_ the short teenager named in his head, overwhelmed by the multitude of old-fashioned and newly made games the arcade had. Not only were there a bunch of arcade machines, but crane machines and UFO catchers attracted the eyes of kids, stuffed with Gloomy Bears and Hello Kitty plushies to name a few. Two DDR machines were lined up together for dancing battles, and the arcade even had the classic _air hockey table_.

Kenma thought he was going to burst with happiness.

Seeing how almost every arcade machine was occupied, Kenma made a dash to the only one available; Galaga.

"I haven't played Galaga in ages…" the gamer mumbled, as he inserted two quarters in the coin slot. Oddly enough, the place didn't provide any game tokens, but Kenma wasn't complaining. It saved him the trouble of being a bumbling mess to one of the employees. "The closest I've gotten to playing Galaga again… was that dating sim where I could date the ship…"

The highschooler shivered. _That_ had to be one of the weirdest games Kenma played, with DRAMAtical Murder still taking the lead.

'PRESS A BUTTON FOR 1P' was what lit up on the screen in bold, white letters, and the gamer gladly did. Pressing one of the red buttons caused the screen to change from huge letters spelling out 'GALAGA' to one lone, pixelated galactic ship flying through space. The teenager swiftly maneuvered the galactic ship with ease, small fingers curled around the joystick, and repeatedly clicked the round button to attack with his pointer finger, effortlessly taking down enemy ships. His heart swelled up with pride as he saw his displayed score multiply each minute.

_That was my last life_, Kenma thought depressingly once his ship was shot down by one of the enemy ships. However, he didn't mind the fact that he was now the prideful number one on the leader board, going by the name of CAT. His real name didn't fit, so why not? As long as Kuroo wasn't here, he wouldn't be teased for putting in such a fitting name.

Yawning a little, he cracked his knuckles and turned around to search for another arcade machine but instead of seeing that, he saw… the sun?

"_Whoa!_" the 'sun' awed, tangerine-colored orbs burning into golden ones. It took Kenma a few moments to realize that he actually wasn't staring directly into the sun (because first of all, that would hurt like absolute _hell_) but instead an unfamiliar teenager, probably younger than him, that had the brightest look on his face. "Cat, you were _amazing_!"

Dumbfounded, Kenma blinked at the stranger that was all up in his face. "Um."

"Oh, right!" A sudden thought of realization struck the teenager, and he snapped his fingers loudly. "My name's Hinata, and _wow!_ You were so cool! You were, like, _whoosh_ and _pew pew_ and _kaboom_ to those ships! You're like… an ace at games!"

Kenma felt his ears grow warm, and he was suddenly grateful that he had long enough hair to cover them. The awkward teenager wasn't used to all this new found attention. Nobody really watched him play video games besides Kuroo, but it wasn't like he was praised everyday. Kuroo would've just constantly bugged him, whining, "C'mon! Don't ignore me!"

This was entirely different. He didn't even know where this Hinata kid came from, with him just popping out of nowhere. How could he have not noticed the messy, bright orange tufts of hair or the whole bubbly aura surrounding this ball of energy in general?

_He's… cute, though_, he admitted to himself, looking the shorter boy up and down. What stood out the most was his volleyball shoes and the almost-blinding yellow hoodie of his, magenta letters spelling out 'HELLO'. He was probably younger than Kenma by at least a year, too, with his babyish face and round eyes.

"Th-thanks," stuttered Kenma, the blush on his face becoming more visible with each passing second. "Er, but my name… it's not Cat."

"Oh," Hinata said before shyly looking away, shuffling his feet. Once he locked gazes with the other again, a faint blush adorned his face.

Kenma swore Cupid's arrow had shot him in the heart in that instant. _C-cute!_

"Kenma," he muttered, embarrassed. "My name is Kenma."

"Kenma!" Hinata echoed once he regained his composure. "Cute name."

The timid teenager was going to die. He hoped that this kid would attend his funeral, at least.

"Heh. Anyway," Hinata chuckled, not noticing how embarrassed the person in front of him was, "you were, like, so cool that…"

Although the shy teenager would've loved to replay the way the person he just met repeated his name in his head for twenty four hours, Hinata had left him hanging with that unfinished sentence. "That…?" asked the taller boy of the two, wanting the other to continue.

"Can we play together?"

It was such a childish question, but the way the boy nodded his head as he asked was just too much for Kenma that before he knew it, he was already shoving through his pockets for quarters and stammered a small, "S-sure," through the whole process.

_Someone cute is talking to me. Someone cute is talking to me. Someone cute is talking to me_, Kenma kept deadpanning through his head as he literally punched the button with his fist—

—and _ouch_, that was not a smart idea, and he just had to click the 1P mode because he couldn't calm his nerves down to find out what the hell he was doing.

"Oh, um, s-sorry," Kenma sputtered out, redder than before, if possible.

"It's no problem!" the orange-haired boy laughed as he registered what happened, patting the other as if they've been pals for so long. "Just tell when you're done, 'kay?" he reassured, as he turned away to do something else.

"Okay," the other mumbled, humiliated, with eyes trying to now refocus on the screen of the arcade machine.

And by focusing on the game, he meant ramming into other galactic ships to get himself repeatedly killed.

Usually, Kenma would never waste money on any game. But when had he ever met someone that gave him such a… _euphoric_ feeling, like when he purchased a new game with his own allowance? Swallowing his pride as a gamer, he almost thought that the joystick snapped in two as he flew his galactic ship into the line of fire.

"Ah," Kenma said, straight-faced, once he got the 'GAME OVER' screen. "I died."

"Let's play then!" chimed Hinata, appearing out of no where. The taller of the two almost yelped in surprise, his heart hammering in his chest.

"Ready...?" the blond inquired like it was meant for Hinata, but it was just meant for himself. He was already slipping in another two quarters in the coin slot.

"Yep." The orange-haired boy nodded, as he took Kenma's place. Pressing two buttons together, the 2P mode of Galaga began, with Hinata being Player 1.

"You're good at this," the reserved male disclosed halfway through Hinata's game, gazing at the screen. Although Hinata wasn't getting many hits in, he excelled at dodging. It wasn't aiding his score, though, but it was a great skill to have nonetheless.

"Y-you think so?" the energetic teen asked with a breathy, gleeful laugh. Kenma turned his attention to the cute boy in front of him and took a gander at his ears. _His ears… They're almost as bright as his hair…_

The introverted boy answered back, "Yeah. Good job... Hinata."

And right as he said that, the white galactic ship had crashed right into an enemy ship.

"Y-your turn next!" a red-faced Hinata ushered the other back in front of the arcade machine, voice sheepish.

_I…_ Kenma thought, gripping the joystick with all of his might, _… have to impress him!_

That was easier said than done.

His mind was usually quiet when he was playing video games, with the occasional line about strategy floating through the back of his mind. Sometimes, maybe even the thought of going to sleep after playing video games three days straight passed through his mind, but he paid it no heed. But his brain was abnormally loud today, with embarrassing thoughts running through his mind that went along the lines of _but if he touched the joystick and I touched the joystick… does that mean we're indirectly holding hands_? or _I am so unbelievably sweaty now that I'm wondering why this is happening but also thanking for this to have happened in my life._

Having such an adorable stranger right by his side did not calm his nerves at all.

"Amazing!" Hinata gasped, admiring Kenma's high score once the game was over as if it was a work of art. In a way, it was, with how nervous the boy had been as he tried to impress some guy he barely knew and all. How he had beat the other teen was a miracle in itself, really.

"Thanks," he breathed, doing a little bow as he did so.

…

_Now what?_

His pockets were empty of any quarters because of the arcade and the latest Super Smash Bros. that was released, so it was impossible to play another game unless if Hinata had more coins. All of a sudden, Kenma flushed at the idea that came in his head as he was pondering what to do. _Maybe… maybe I can ask for his phone number?_

An abrupt wave of courage pulsed through the timid teen. "Um, Hinata?" he began, palms sweaty. "D-do you want to trade—"

"Big bro!" someone shouted from across the arcade, and a little kid scampered towards Hinata, pulling down on the hood of his sweater.

_Wait._ Kenma cocked his head in confusion. _Two Hinatas?_

"Ack!" Hinata gagged, pulling the smaller version of him off his clothes. An annoyed expression settled on his face. "_Natsu!_ What the heck was that for?"

"Mom said to hurry!" the so-called Natsu whined, pouting ever so slightly. From the looks of it, she appeared to be Hinata's little sibling, and it wasn't hard to tell with their matching, messy hair and hyper way of talking. "We're gonna be late!"

"W-wait!" 'Big bro' half-said, half-yelled as Natsu roughly tugged at his clothes. Tangerine-colored eyes crinkled when he gave a bashful grin to Kenma. "Kenma! I'll see you later, maybe? Until next time, then!"

"Hold on!" the left-behind male called, but now Hinata was already halfway out of the arcade by the hands of his little sister. What he said fell on deaf ears thanks to the bustling crowd, and all Kenma could do was blink, floored.

He smacked himself in the head. _H-how will we ever see each other again when I don't even live in this town...?_

"Got the case of the love bug, Kenma?" a gruff voice inquired, mischief laced in his words, and he thought the world was ending.

"Kuroo!" the blond shouted, spinning on his heel to face him. His outrageously tall friend had that all knowing smirk of his on his face, and he posed with laid-back confidence.

Kenma had the sudden urge to uppercut him in the jaw.

"Why didn't you answer my calls?" the now angered teen hissed with clenched teeth, but he looked more embarrassed than anything.

"Calm down," the black-haired teenager coolly stated, slightly backing away from his shorter friend like he was about to combust. "My phone's dead, alright? So I went to the most logical place that you'd be in; the arcade. But _wow_, who ever knew you were such a player, Kenma?"

"Enough," said-person exhaled, rolling his eyes. "I'll be ignoring you now."

"What? But you don't even want to—"

"_No._"

Kenma shoved his hands into his jersey and sighed in content. A small smile formed on his face, as he turned away from Kuroo and strolled out of the arcade. _Thank you, Galaga, for letting me meet him..._

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**So, in the actual tale, I never even got the guy's name. Sigh.**

**I hope you enjoyed this. ^^ Until next time, everybody!**


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